Lyell: Colorado State's finally playing a big game again at Hughes Stadium

Oct. 29, 2013

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All those fans who gave up on CSU's football season after the devastating homecoming loss to San Jose State might want to give the Rams another shot this weekend.

They've won back-to-back Mountain West Conference road games since then and are a legitimate contender for the MW's Mountain Division title and a bowl game with five games remaining. And no game is bigger than the one they'll play Saturday night at Hughes Stadium against Boise State.

That's right, Colorado State University (4-4, 2-1 MW) is playing Boise State (5-3, 3-1) -- the standard bearer for much of the past decade for schools not in a Bowl Championship Series conference -- in a contest that could determine the winner of the Mountain Division and a spot in the first MW championship game Dec. 7 against the winner of the West Division.

And they're playing that game right here in Fort Collins, at Hughes Stadium. It's well worth the price of admission, with tickets available for as little as $22.

To those fans who have said the Rams need to start winning games to get them back in the stands, this is your chance. CSU is starting to win football games again. They've won five of their past six games at Hughes Stadium, three of their last four overall and already have matched last season's win total and surpassed that of the previous three seasons.

The Rams finally are showing the kind of "tangible results" that coach Jim McElwain has talked about as proof that the program was moving in the right direction under his leadership. They're fun to watch, too, having scored more than 50 points in a game twice already this season.

Kids' football and soccer games will be over long before the 6 p.m. start, and there are no conflicts with local high school football playoff games, either. You can still watch most of the Big Ten, Big 12 and Southeastern Conference games on television before making the short trek over to Hughes.

So why not come out and see what the fuss is all about? See if these Rams really can compete with a program like Boise State?

I'm sure the Boise State fans in the area won't have any trouble turning out. I'm guessing they'll be 4,000 or 5,000 of them, decked out in blue and orange, throughout the stadium. Wouldn't it be something if there were 25,000 or more Rams fans, clad in green and gold, to drown out their cheers? To give the Rams the kind of home-field advantage they deserve in a game like this?

If you haven't seen these Rams yet, this would be a good time to check them out. And if you gave up on them earlier this season or during any of the last three years, this is a good time to give them another look.

They really have changed.

Sports reporter Kelly Lyell can be reached by email at KellyLyell@coloradoan.com. Follow him at twitter.com/KellyLyell and facebook.com/KellyLyell.new